Apparatus for transporting castings from continuous casting machines

ABSTRACT

A device for transferring billets, which are cut from cast strands produced by a multistrand continuous casting machine, from a roller table to a cooling bed adjacent to the table comprises a beam movable transversely over the table. A bar is pivotally mounted across an end of the beam and in one position is adapted for pushing one or more billets across the table onto the cooling bed by movement of the beam. The bar has horizontal flanges for extending under a billet on the table and means is provided to pivot the bar up for picking a billet up from the table and for carrying the billet over other billets on the table to the cooling bed by movement of the beam.

United States Patent Inventor Karl Gipperich Duesseldori-Gerresheim, Germany Appl. No. 869,758

Filed Oct. 27, 1969 Patented Jan. 4, 1972 Assignee Schloemann Aktiengesellschaft Dusseldorf, Germany Priority Oct. 25, 1968 Germany P 18 05 239.6

APPARATUS FOR TRANSPORTING CASTINGS FROM CONTINUOUS CASTING MACHINES 3 Claims, 2 Drawing Figs.

U.S. Cl 198/20, 198/24 Int. Cl B65g 47/00 Field of Search 198/24, 27, 127, 20; 214/1 B Primary Examiner-Richard E. Aegerter Attorney-Sandoe, Hopgood & Calimafde ABSTRACT: A device for transferring billets, which are cut from cast strands produced by a multistrand continuous casting machine, from a roller table to a cooling bed adjacent to the table comprises a beam movable transversely over the table. A bar is pivotally mounted across an end of the beam and in one position is adapted for pushing one or more billets across the table onto the cooling bed by movement of the beam. The bar has horizontal flanges for extending under a billet on the table and means is provided to'pivot the bar up for picking a billet up from the table and for carrying the billet over other billets on the table to the cooling bed by movement of the beam.

PATENTEU JAN 4 I972 SHEET 1 UF 2 INVENTOR. KARL GIPPERICH ATTORNEYS BY M WW9 APPARATUS FOR TRANSPORTING CASTINGS FROM CONTINUOUS CASTING MACHINES The present invention relates to a cross transfer device for the cutoff lengths of strand in a multistrand continuous casting machine.

in a prior art continuous casting machine, cast strands emerging from the guide apron are brought into a horizontal position, straightened, out to the desired length and moved to a-cooling bed. The cut lengths or billets must be moved out of the way of the strands which follow so as not to interfere with the movement of the latter. This is accomplished by transporting the billets on a roller table whose rollers have a greater speed than the preceding withdrawal rollers of the casting machine for moving the billets at an increased speed to a cooling bed. This arrangement requires much space.

To reduce the required space it is known to locate directly after the cutoff station a transverse removal station where the billets are pushed sideways onto a cooling bed adjacent to the roller table. This arrangement, however, is unsuitable for multistrand machines because the different casting speeds, and hence the different discharge speeds, of the several strands, which are unavoidable in multistrand machines and which cause a staggered movement of the billets, prevent a transverse removal.

A principal object of the present invention is to provide apparatus for moving the cut lengths of strand, or billets, out of the path of the following strands during a nonuniform discharge of the strands from the casting machine without requiring an additional discharge area.

In accordance with the invention, this is accomplished by a cross transfer device consisting of a beam which carries a head with a bar pivotally mounted thereon and which is supported so as to be laterally movable relative to the roller table and far enough above the roller table for it to pass over the billets which are located on the roller table. The bar is pivotally mounted on the head of the cross transfer device to swing up and down relative to the head when actuated by a fluid cylinder. Thus the transfer device is adapted to move across billets lying on the roller table to a particular billet, which is ready to be moved, and to push or carry that billet to the cooling bed, or to push that billet over to another billet and push both billets together off onto the cooling bed.

A particularly advantageous design has the front of the bar fitted with horizontal flanges which can be moved underneath a billet to pick up the billet, carry it over other billets on the roller table and deposit it on the cooling bed. An embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a roller table with a lateral cross transfer device in accordance with the invention, which in use is disposed downstream from the strand cutofi' station of a multistrand continuous casting machine, and

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side elevation, partly in section, of the cross transfer device of FIG. I.

Referring to the drawings, a horizontal roller table having rollers 2 for each of the three strands la, lb and 1c is located downstream of a three strand continuous casting machine (not shown). The rollers 2 are driven individually by conventional drive means indicated at 3. Each strand has a conventional cutting device 4 for cutting the strands into lengths 5 and also has a limit bar or stop 6.

A cross transfer device 7, which is located to one side of the roller table, comprises a fixed housing which is provided with upper and lower guide rollers 8 and 9 which support the beam 1 l to be movable transversely to the roller table. A head 17 is attached across the front end of beam 11 parallel to the roller table and the beam 11 is supported high enough by the rollers 9 so that the beam and its head 17 can be moved over the cut strand lengths or billets S lying on the roller table to a cooling bed 18, which is at the opposite side of the roller table. This movement is carried out by a pinion 13, which is driven through a clutch l4 and a gear transmission 15 by a motor 16,

meshin with a rack 12 mounted on the underside of beam 1 l.

The ead 17 is provided with bearing blocks 19 on which a bar 20 pivotally mounted through rear extensions 21. Attached to the head 17 is a fluid cylinder 22 whose piston rod 23 engages, through a pin 24, an upper bearing block 25 of the bar 20. The head 17 has stop bolts 26 which by their stops 27 limit the swinging motion of the extensions 21 and thereby of the bar 20. The underside of the bar 20 is provided with filter flanges 28 which project from the bar 20 about the width of a billet 5. The flanges 28 are spaced to fit between the roller table rollers 2 when the bar 20 is lowered and the flanges 28 are pushed in under the billet. The roller table is provided with rails 29 and 30 for bridging the lateral gaps between the lines of rollers 2 and supporting the billets when the latter are pushed off the roller table by the transfer device.

When a given out billet 5 reaches the limit bar 6, and is ready to be removed, the head 17, with its bar 20 raised, is driven by the motor 16 over the other billets to that billet. The bar 20 is then lowered by actuating the fluid cylinder 22 and the cut billet is engaged by a pusher face of the bar 20 and is pushed either directly onto the cooling bed 18 or along the rails 29 and 30 over to the next cut billet 5, so that both billets can be pushed off the roller table and onto the cooling bed 18 together after the second billet has reached the limit bar 6.

It is also possible to move the flanges 28 underneath a billet 5, to lift the billet up and carry it over the other billets on the roller table by swinging the bar 20 up and moving the beam. When the bar 20, with a billet thus carried on its flanges 28, is over the cooling bed 18, the bar is lowered to deposit the billet thereon.

What is claimed is:

l. A device for transferring billets, which are cut from cast strands produced by a multistrand continuous casting machine, from a table on which billets cut from the several strands are received in generally parallel relation to a cooling bed adjacent to said table, comprising the improvement a retractable cantilever beam supported for movement across said table from one side thereof to a cooling bed at the opposite side, a bar pivotally mounted on said beam on an axis extending in generally parallel relation to the normal position of the billets on the table, said bar having a vertical pusher face and a horizontal lifter flange said bar in its lower pivotal position being located so that said pusher face is positioned for pushing a billet from the table onto said cooling bed by said movement of the beam across the table, and so that said lifter flange is positioned to project under a billet on the table and means for pivoting the bar and a billet carried on the lifter flange thereof, upward with respect to the beam to a position above the level of other billets on the table, whereby a billet supported on said lifter flange may be transported above other billets on the table to the cooling bed.

2. The device of claim 1, in which said table has lines of spaced rollers for supporting billets cut from the respective strands and rails extending transversely of the table between adjacent rollers in each line for supporting billets pushed laterally from the rollers, the lifter flanges of said bar being arranged to pass between the rails and the rollers when the bar is in its lower pivotal position and the beam is moved across the table.

3. The device of claim 1 in which the beam element is movably supported adjacent to one side of the table by guide rollers bearing on its upper and lower sides respectively, and which includes power drive means for moving the beam element relatively across the table.

' Inventor(s) UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Dated Januarv 4. 1972 Patent No. 3,631,959

Karl Gipperich It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 2, line 40, cancel "comprisingg". Same line, after "improvement" insert comprising Column 2, line 46, after "flange" insert a comma Signed and sealed this 6th day of June 1972.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,JR. ROBERT GOTTSCHALK Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents USCOMM-DC 6O376-P69 u.s. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: I969 03G6-334 FORM PO-1050 (10-69) 

1. A device for transferring billets, which are cut from cast strands produced by a multistrand continuous casting machine, from a table on which billets cut from the several strands are received in generally parallel relation to a cooling bed adjacent to said table, comprising the improvement a retractable cantilever beam supported for movement across said table from one side thereof to a cooling bed at the opposite side, a bar pivotally mounted on said beam on an axis extending in generally parallel relation to the normal position of the billets on the table, said bar having a vertical pusher face and a horizontal lifter flange, said bar in its lower pivotal position being located so that said pusher face is positioned for pushing a billet from the table onto said cooling bed by said movement of the beAm across the table, and so that said lifter flange is positioned to project under a billet on the table and means for pivoting the bar and a billet carried on the lifter flange thereof, upward with respect to the beam to a position above the level of other billets on the table, whereby a billet supported on said lifter flange may be transported above other billets on the table to the cooling bed.
 2. The device of claim 1, in which said table has lines of spaced rollers for supporting billets cut from the respective strands and rails extending transversely of the table between adjacent rollers in each line for supporting billets pushed laterally from the rollers, the lifter flanges of said bar being arranged to pass between the rails and the rollers when the bar is in its lower pivotal position and the beam is moved across the table.
 3. The device of claim 1 in which the beam element is movably supported adjacent to one side of the table by guide rollers bearing on its upper and lower sides respectively, and which includes power drive means for moving the beam element relatively across the table. 